The Taking of the Palace
by The Legendary Zero
Summary: This is the battle of Lut Gholein's brave palace guards. Their final battle.


I wrote this story a while ago, I had planned to submit it to another site, I dont know if it went through. I know it sucks, it was like my first story...and I decided not to just let it rot on my file folder so...here it is.

Setting: The Palace of Lut Gholein before the hero reaches it in the caravan

bottom to top room order:

There are 3 palace cellars in the bottom, 2 chambers set aside for the harem girls, the main room, guard quarters/eating facilitiy chambers, and a floor set aside for high ranking guards and Lord Jehryn

Story:

"Stop that Sara!",cried one of the harem girls

"Its not my fault your weak!"

"Really Sara this is stupid...you do this every night

"Shut it Keela!"

"I mean why do you pick on Lori?"

"I wouldn't pick on anyone if we weren't stuck in this stupid room. There are plenty of other rooms Jehryn could have gave me, but no."

"Its not always about you!"

As Sara was about to shout a very dirty comment back, a scream erupted from the lower harem chamber. Lori immediately screamed as she tried running out, dashing for the main chamber. As she reached the stairs, a Blood Clan appeared with a monstrous goat head and a giant Lochabar Axe.

Lori was struck speechless as the Blood Clan leisurely dropped its axe down on her head while the stricken Sara and Keela watched from their bedroom.

More screams erupted from below and bloodcurdling, beastly shouts joined them. The Blood Clan started for the last two girls in the room as they screamed one last time...

Kalean was awoken from his sleep by Seba, white-faced and panic stricken. "What is it Seba?" too sleepy to see Seba's shock. "the-the harem girls, they're dead!"

Kalean was immediantly awoken and reached for his spear near his bed and asked "What do you mean, what happened?"

As Seba opened his mouth, Serina and Keela's last screams echoed to them.

Seba worriedly asked "Should we evacuate...umm sir?"

Kalean shook his head. These new guards only knew to run, not to serve. Kalean, hiding his disgust for the time, ordered Seba to gather the guards and head down to the harem.

Down in the first floor of the harem, there was a surprising number of guards gathered, especially for a rather small palace. Over a hundred guards gathered around, chatting and laughing, thinking it was a drill.

Kalean saw a group of 10 Blood Clan suddenly emerge up the stairs, leading the charge, as was their instinct. He saw a particularly large one with blood on its axe.

All the guards, suddenly alert, raised their javelins and spears, and charged

The seasoned guards impaled 6 Blood Clan first and fled back so the second row of guards could attack.

Kalean took the large Blood Clan (consequently who killed the 3 afore mentioned girls) and thrusted his spear meaning to finish him quickly.

The Blood Clan parried with its axe and brought it down with a great force, but Kalean dodged and impaled him.

As the 3 remaining Blood Clan were dispatched, the unwounded, overconfident guards rushed down the stairs apparently wanting to rescue the harem girls in distress, and get a very fond thank you in return.

That thought stopped when they saw the towering Sand Raider with 4 arms holding katars, the Dune Beasts with claws stained with blood, and the 25 skeletons with bows and arrows at the ready.

"Charge!", yelled Kalean, and he headed right into the fray. The guards with the spears hesitantly followed, while guards who instead had knives and axes threw their weapons.

It lasted 1 hour as guards and demons exchanged blows. The men were simply no match for the onslaught, there was no hope. And yet they fought. There were heroic parts in the battle when one man was injured, and another man thrust their spear into the demon who did it, and then dragged the downed, bleeding man out of harm. Then there were the horrifiying parts where a Dune Beast would break open a man's skull, and then rip up the chest and feast.

Kalean and his good friend Zanarhi watched in horror as unholy arrows ripped open skulls, claws cleaved flesh, and the menacing Sand Raiders walked with one or 2 men impaled on each sword, hoping to gather more.

The guards were not as weak as anyone would imagine though. Seba and a guard recognized as Kent were very effective as a two man stabbing team. They impaled Dune Beasts that strayed too close, and even caused the Sand Raiders some trouble with spear feinting and jabbing.

Zanarhi and Kalean in the corner worked on the Skeleton Archers, knowing even a seasoned melee defence was no match for bow and arrow.

Kalean looked around as the last skeleton was broken. Though the guards had some victories, the demons were too plenty. With a quick count he made out only about 40 able guards left. About 20 had serious wounds and backed against a corner, vulnerable for a hungry demon.

Kalean needed to grap Jehryn and the survivors and block the palace door, this was a losing battle.

As Kalean was about to announce he would fetch Jehryn, Zanarhi screamed and shouted "Dear god...look at that Sand Raider!"

Kalean looked knowing a veteran warrior like Zanarhi wouldn't put down his spear and scream a warning in the heat of battle if it wasn't something that would doom them all.

FireEye the Sand Raider. Over 20 caravans taken by him in the desert, once even a visible raid one could see on the streets. He would always lead a survivor back to town to tell his tale before he died of a curse. Feared by his own monsters and a 2nd in command to Duriel, a Lesser Evil, this was an unwelcome shock.

"Zanarhi, hold the defenses! I am getting Lord Jehryn out!",

Kalean dashed to the door leaving some guards to think he was fleeing. No one had time to ponder this as FireEye lived up to his name. His eyes glowed with a unholy aura and fire surrounded his body. His katars turned to a deep shade of red, somehow reminding the guards of his victims.

Zanarhi raised his spear, and Kent and Seba rallied behind him. 5 less anxious guards hung back unsure whether to fight the beast.

Suddenly, FireEye gave a earsplitting scream so loud, blood spurted from nearby guards' ears. All the monsters left the room as the 30+ guards were left with FireEye.

Kalean dashed to the main hall, sidestepping Lori's corpse, and jabbed wildly at monsters that had somehow made it up.

"Damn!, I should have fetched Lord Jehryn earlier!" Kalean said aloud. If Lut Gholein lost its lord then mass panic would erupt and the people will leave for fear of monsters, or perhaps, traitors as originally thought once when an Assassin attacked Jehryn.

Kalean flew through the corridor and up the stairs as he reached Jehryns door in a panic and pushed it open. 3 Dune Beasts immediantly looked up from their search for Jehryn. Kalean could not see a corpse being savagely eaten by the monsters, so Jehryn might be alive still, and be away to safety.

He almost felt relieved until he realized he was in a room with three Dune Beasts.

The Dune Beasts lashed out claws at the ready, and Kalean gave a scream, dropping his spear.

Suddenly, Jehryn leapt out of a closet, knifes flashing and dashed to Kalean's assistance.

Jehryn threw 10 knifes in a flurry, injuring one, and then stabbed it dead, right between the eyes. The second beast attacked Jehryn, as the big leader of the pack readied to pounce Kalean.

Jehryn stabbed with a knife, missed, and got a faceful of claw on the top of his head. Jehryn, dismissing it as a minor cut, gave an expert feint of the knife as the Dune Beast readied to parry, then twirled as the Dune Beast readied to parry the next attack, then lobbed 4 knifes through into the Dune Beasts skull.

Kalean had stabbed an arm of the beast, but it gave no mercy or acknowledgment of its now useless limb, and it charged, mouth trickling blood, eyes hungrily staring at his prey. Kalean dodged, ducked, and jabbed right through the demon's foul heart.

Kalean, bloodied and injured shouted,"Jehryn!, we must escape, the Palace has been stormed by beasts...and...FireEye."

"I will not leave my brave guards to die pointlessly to-you did not say FireEye I hope?"

"Yes Mi'lord, its FireEye" Kalean said hopelessly. Jehryn, always acting as the heroic leader, asked to join the fight below.

"I am going down into that fight."

"Lut Gholein cannot exist without you Jehryn."

"And neither can those men, we're wasting time."

"Well Lord Jehryn, I must say that's not one of your smartest diplomatic decisions.

Back in the warzone, only 10 guards were left and FireEye was untouched, except by a wound on his towering shoulder by a spear, compliments of the guard, Kent.

Then, unexplicably, FireEye suddently burst blood from its unholy mouth, and the wound on its shoulder gushed more blood. The demon was smiling, however, as flesh burst under each arm, that itself grew into an arm giving it 8 total. FireEye gave a tremendous leap to a corpse of a fellow Sand Raider and took all 4 swords into his new arms.

The guards were awestruck and disgusted, and some just opened their jaws, as if to puke.

FireEye took advanrage and swiped his bottom left arm right through the head of a guard. Then he impaled 4 more with lightning speed. The remaining 5 backed away as the katars of FireEye held 4 guards impaled as ornaments.

Just then, Kalean and Jehryn burst into the room.

Kalean snatched a spear from a dead ally on the floor and flung it straight into FireEyes already wounded shoulder.

The demon, screaming from pain, jabbed Kalean on the shoulder as payback. Kalean dropped to the floor in agony as FireEye readied one of his 8 swords to add a royal prize, Lord Jehryn, to his collection. Kalean stood shakily and used his own spear to counter and chop off the arm about to thrust its sword through his royal majesty, and in return FireEye thrust three swords at once, heading right to Kalean's heart.

Zanarhi, Kalean's childhood friend, did not allow this to pass, and he charged the demon 5 times his size. FireEye turned as he heard the battlecry of Zanarhi, giving Kalean enough time to recover and order the remaining few guards to attack. FireEye grew a ninth arm in a flash, and drove his fist straight into Zanarhi's jaw.

Kent, Seba, Kalean, and two other guards fenced with the monstrosity, while Zanarhi unsteadily rose, blood trickling from his mouth.

Jehyrn backed away, afraid to throw a knife that could hurt a comrade, and afraid to do melee combat, and he instead focused on the Blood Clan that remained in the back of the room.

FireEye was becoming confused. Its body was in pain all over, and he had to concentrate on five opponents at once on top of that, and suddenly, the monster screamed and leapt over the guard's heads, landing right where Zanarhi had started to rise.

FireEye thrust his blade into Zanarhi's back, and the surprised guard felt his world go black.

FireEye stood with victims all around him. He reveled in the chaos he had made, but was all too bored of it. He decided to finish his battle, and the only combatants left below him were Seba, Kent, Jehryn, Kalean, and the two other guards.

"How could this have happened...how could I have let this happen?!", Jehryn yelled, tears bursting from his eyes as his beloved and faithful guards lay in pools of their own blood.

FireEye leapt again and landed with a small earthquake right next to the small group.

"Retreat!", screamed Seba.

This time, Kalean was with him.

Kent, Seba, and the two guards formed a protective circle around Jehryn as they fled. Kalean followed with his back turned, facing FireEye with a hateful look in his own eyes. FireEye took a step towards the retreating men, but Kalean suddenly threw his spear straight into FireEye's face. The monstrosity dropped to the ground, clawing at its head, removing the spear, but the tip of the blade touched his left eye and the demon yelled in agony.

Before Kalean left the room, he looked one last time at Zanarhi. Kalean would not forget him. At least Zanarhi had been avenged, that was the only thing that could be said.

And he fled the hellish battlefield.

Just then, FireEye opened its right eye. He was not dead...yet.


End file.
